1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to improvements in the field of compact discs and specifically relates to an article of manufacture comprised of a compact disc and display enclosure therefore, the enclosure being convertible from a display or merchandising mode to a storage mode.
2. Prior Art
The compact disc or CD is becoming a progressively more popular medium for the replication of music in the home. The compact disc comprises a thin polymeric circular member approximately 43/4 inches (12 centimeters) in diameter and having a central aperture adapted to be received on the spindle or centering mechanism of a disc player. The compact disc incorporates on a surface thereof digitally encoded information adapted to be laser read by the disc player. It is possible to incorporate an hour or more of music on a single compact disc and it is generally agreed that the quality of musical reproduction of the disc equals or exceeds the quality of music obtainable with the finest of conventional long playing records.
At present, compact discs are costly to manufacture and accordingly, sell at retail prices in the range of about $14.00 to $20.00 per disc.
As noted in my above referenced application, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,620,630, the substance of which is hereby incorporated by reference, disc containers known before the advent of the above referenced application were expensive, fragile, and subject to pilferage due to their small size.
As noted in the discussion of the above referenced application, discs heretofor were marketed in polymeric boxes which, for purposes of pilferage reduction, were bonded to enlarged cardboard sheets or panels or encased in large plastic enclosures to reduce the likelihood of a thief secreting the package in a pocket. After purchase, the cardboard or plastic was stripped away and the disc stored in the polymeric enclosure.
In addition to being expensive, the polymeric enclosures were susceptible to cracking, breakage of the hinges, and in addition, the overall thickness of the so-called "jewel box" package was far greater than necessary for protection of the disc making the storage of multiple discs unduly wasteful of space.